Raqqa (Syria News) The international coalition warplanes carried out, on Wednesday, several air strikes on the city of Raqqa.Qasioun News reported that the US-led international coalition carried many air strikes, this morning, on al-Thakna neighborhood, west of the city, while the Syrian Democratic Forces shelled, using heavy artillery, the neighborhood, but no casualties were reported.
The attack took place after the Syrian Democratic Forces militia managed to capture al-Rasheed neighborhood in the old city completely, following a violent clashes with the Islamic State militants.
At least 2,000 ISIL terrorists remain in Raqqa, mostly foreigners: US envoy
[AlMasdar] Approximately 2,000 Islamic State (ISIL) fighters remain inside the provincial capital of the Al-Raqqa Governoraate, the U.S. Coalition’s Spokesperson, Brett McGurk, announced this week.
“It seems, from the information we have, that, of the 2,000 or so ISIS fighters that are left, bulk of them are foreign fighters,” coalition’s envoy said, as quoted by Ara News Agency.
Furthermore, the Coalition Spokesperson stated the ongoing operation to liberate Raqqa City will require more than just a military effort, adding that the ongoing humanitarian crisis is something that requires coordination with different groups.
“It’s not just a military effort. We also met with local councils and a number of tribal sheiks who are working very closely with us to defeat ISIS. And we have diplomats on the ground, working on the stabilization and humanitarian elements. It was a very encouraging visit, spent about two days there,” McGurk added.
Kurdish forces wrest control over the heart of Raqqa from ISIS
[AlMasdar] The US-backed, Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) have advanced into and taken control of Raqqa city’s central districts, thoroughly ejecting ISIS militants from them.
After some ten weeks of combat operations inside Raqqa against ISIS, Kurdish-led fighters finally assumed control over the city’s innermost neighborhoods – an area generally referred to as the Old City.
Late yesterday, reports came in that the SDF had pushed ISIS militants out of the al-Rasheed and Mansour suburbs. In doing so, Kurdish-led troops secured the entirety of the Old City area and de facto gained control over the heart of Raqqa.
The Old City was the most heavily defended area inside Raqqa, with ISIS launching ceaseless counterattacks and car bombs against Kurdish-led forces over the last two-and-a-half months in order to try deter their advances.
With this most recent victory by the SDF, Islamic State militants in Raqqa have now been confined to the city’s northern and western districts.